Unsafe at any speed?

“The road itself has become a dangerous speedway for those using it as a cutoff from Route 199 to Route 9,” said Ann Wyrick, who lives adjacent to the proposed driveway. “Adding possibly 100 [car trips] a day to this road will be a disaster.” Wyrick added that just two weeks ago, a driver failed to negotiate that turn and ended up taking down a tree in her front yard.

Later in the meeting, David Pearson spoke about that accident.

“My son is the one who had the accident. I gave him a car about six weeks ago and he totaled it two weeks ago on that corner,” Pearson said. “So I think he found the worst curve on that road and it doesn’t make sense to me to put that many [homes] coming out [at that point].”

Red Hook Central School District Transportation Supervisor Jeffrey Popp is also concerned by the proposed entrance. A copy of a letter sent by Popp to Highway Superintendent Theresa Burke was forwarded to The Observer after the meeting:

“The proposed entrance to the development is problematic due to the sight distance limits imposed by the hills on both sides and blind curves,” Popp wrote. “A stopped school bus on a public road is dangerous enough, the hills and blind curves significantly increase the danger of an incident happening. The bus stop would be a ‘cluster stop’ for multiple students, further increasing the likelihood of a problem occurring should traffic not be prepared to stop.”

Also of concern was the development’s impact on both the farmland it would be built on and nearby farm operations.

Scenic Hudson sent a representative with a letter urging the planning board to carefully consider the impact of the development on farms that Scenic Hudson has helped protect.

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